Washington, D.C. — Ranking Member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Rick Larsen (D-WA) and Ranking Member of the House Committee on Small Business Nydia Velázquez led 88 House Democrats in urging Secretary Duffy to preserve the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program that impacts over 50,000 small businesses in every state of the union.
“We write to express our strong support for the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program. As Members of Congress who provide the authority for the DBE program and the highway, transit, highway safety, and aviation dollars to which DBE goals apply, we caution you to tread carefully with the Department’s plans for the program,” the Members wrote.
“The evidence demonstrates that discrimination affects minority and women entrepreneurs at every stage of the process, from access to investment dollars and credit to biased treatment from customers, suppliers and regulators,” the Members continued. “This statistical evidence has shown the disparities between the capacity of minority- and women-owned businesses to compete for federal dollars, and the utilization of that capacity by federal contractors.”
“You have an opportunity to implement changes in a manner that promotes fairness, protects small businesses, maintains relevant data, and maintains predictability for project sponsors, the construction industry, and transportation workers,” the Members concluded. “We urge you to proceed carefully, provide ample guidance to stakeholders and project sponsors, and work with Congress on changes to this critical program.”
You can read the full letter HERE.
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